PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND ANTIMICROBIAL EFFECT OF CUCURBITAPEPOFRUITS (SQUASH) ON STAPHYLOCOCCUSAUREUS.

ABTRACT

The aqueous and organic extract of the fruits of Cucurbita pepo traditionally used for the treatment of infectious disease were screened for the presence of phytochemical and its antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. Theethanolic extract (i.e. organic extracts) show the highest activity while the aqueous extract shows the least activity against the test organism. Preliminary phytochemical screening indicated the presence of Alkaloid, Tannin, Saponins, Anthraquinones, Glycoside and Flavonoids on both the extracts. The result also revealed that, the fruit extract of Cucurbitapepo had a bacteriostatic and bactericidal effect on Staphylococcus aureus, this will provide a scientific support for the local medicinal use of the fruit of Cucurbitapepo.

Keywords: Phytochemical Screening, Antibacterial activity, Cucurbitapepo, Staphylococcus aureus and Antimicrobial activity